Monday, February 9, 2009

News items from Uganda

Operation Lightning Thunder, while being possibly the worst named operation in military history, was historic for the level of cooperation that Uganda, Southern Sudan and the Congo put together to fight LRA rebels still hiding in Congo. The NYT has run a story where it is revealed that the operation was partially funded and trained by the US military. This story has not been run yet in the news papers here, and so is still unknown to most Ugandans. The NYT reports the operation a complete failure, though I am not so sure. Its "normal" operating procedure for the LRA to kill civilians, whether before, during or after an attack. It has also led to the number 2 and 3 leaders asking to surrender.

The other day I posted about a story coming out of Kenya about how much MPs really make in the country. In todays Daily Monitor, we have just learned that Ugandan MPs have double their allowances for overseas travel since January 1 to $430-$710 per night. Remember, thats on top of their pay and reimbursed travel costs.

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A short bio

I am a consultant with the World Bank in DC and a recent PhD graduate of economics at the University of California, Irvine. My research is on conflict and post-conflict development, and the economic impact of the environment and environmental change. I am currently working on a randomized impact evaluation for the World Bank in the post-conflict area of northern Uganda.

My two favorite quotes

>> If you want to build a ship, don't drum up people to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea. - Antoine de Saint-Exupery

>> One of Einstein's colleagues asked him for his telephone number one day. Einstein reached for a telephone directory and looked it up. "You don't remember your own number?" the man asked, startled.

"No," Einstein answered. "Why should I memorize something I can so easily get from a book?"